Long Live Life ─ with flaws, scars and healing
This was one of the dramas I actually didn't plan to watch until I saw the spoilers of the first episode on Twitter ─ and absolutely liked how the premise was about CODA. I also enjoy watching dramas of a child time travelling and meeting their teen parents so I didn't hesitate to give it a try and I am so glad that I did.Starting from the name, throughout the episodes they made a reference to Frida Kahlo's Sandías / Viva la Vida (Long Live Life). In Mexican folk culture, watermelon is commonly found in representations of the Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration ─ so at first, I thought the story might mostly focus on angsty side of life. However, it was just another connection with how Eungyeol's life changed thanks to music shop owner and how his death affected more than one life. So, it wasn't about sadness or fear of death but mostly about natural path and development. Thus, Sparkling/ Twinkling Watermelon is such a nostalgic name for this drama because it can be interpreted as: Radiant life/youth, sparkling performance, or a sparkling period of time in youth before they became adults. And I really like it when the name actually summarises the storyline.
When it comes to acting, everyone did a great job at portraying their characters. As for characters, I must admit, for me, mostly Ha Yichan and Yoon Cheongah stood out ─ as teens and adults. Their characters were beautifully written and acted. They weren't perfect but they were perfect with their flaws, scars and their healing processes.
The drama also showed beautiful dynamics ─ whether it was friendship or parental relationships.
At the end, just like any other time travel drama, there were unanswered questions, discrepancy and some "what if" scenarios. But overall, it was an enjoyable watch.
link to edits: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLI-LyvxxdMxDG3OaZjOkQIQUXWkuLTosF&si=HlG3s3wpE07lYOTL
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Refreshing
Honestly one of the best series that I have seen where persons that have a different way of life is depicted. The family life that was shown is so accurate to the ones that persons with hearing limitations have to face. As someone that knows sign language but doesn't have to, it was nice to see a story that revolved around it. All the concerns that go with being in their situation was real and I appreciated having them in such an amazingly positive light.The story was new to me, having the hint of mystery and time travel and a sprinkle of romance...Sorta. The life conversations I couldn't follow because I don't know the signs used, but it was still beautiful to watch. I must say, for a person that supposed to be "super smart" Gyeol was pretty dumb too many times, but it was funny so I excused most of it. His passion and understanding were his driving force to help everyone he met, I mean he did have direct relation to them, but even if Ha Yi Chan was a stranger I would risk it all to help him also. He is honestly so amazing, his thirst for life and living it to the fullest because he wants to help his grandma. I wish he got the world, but he got the next best thing. He was kind and caring while being a fool, there was no reason to not love him. I literally cried when his tape got left in street because of you know what. Worst yet when he was standing on the roof of the hospital after his grandma visited him. I tell you there was no more heartbreaking scene than these moments. Yoon Cheong Ah was such an amazing example of resilience, strength and determination seeing her growth into having friends that she trust was sweet. Her teacher though, lets just say she needed more than a time out and I was sooooooo happy when all her maids got fired.
The ending honestly wasn't amazing but I loved how things turned out, it was slightly underwhelming but I still liked it.
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Viva La Vida! Viva La Music!
In short: This Kdrama worth the hype, and it's not overrated! It's almost perfect!Why it's not perfect? Because I think, they could've done more with the storyline in the present, and of course, in some cases the time-traveling plot is inconsistent, but honestly, I don't really care, because THIS ISN'T A SCI-FI, this is Kdrama about FAMILY!
I don't really know what should I say, I don't want to go into spoilers, so the only thing I can say is that, this show is well-written, every character is amazing, and so called "villains" are good too. I mean, not good people, just well-written and the actors did a fantastic job!
The show captures really well how hard it is to be a teen, or being a parent, or just being alive in general.
I was a bit disappointed that they didn't do much with Se Kyeong and Eun Yu, but I get it, the main focus was Eun Gyeol's family!
If I'm being honest, my favorite character was Cheongha, after all the bad things that happened to her, she never lost hope, never give up and raised her kids later. I liked her adult version, but I LOVED her young version even more! Shin Eun Soo is an incredible actress, and she's very likable as well.
Anyway, I don't want to mumble for long, if you didn't watch this Kdrama yet, watch it now!
Lastly: The OST is also amazing. For 16 hour, I was a teen again!
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MY NEW COMFORT KDRAMA
I was in a HUGE kdrama slump. i had no interest in watching any new releases especially ongoing dramas… i was even in my cdrama era for awhile but Twinkling Watermelon brought me out of my slump. I had like no expectations for this drama. I just kept seeing it on my TL and saw it was highly rated on Viki so i wanted to give it a chance. The first 2 episodes were really depressing and confusing for me so i kinda had to push through and i’m so glad i did because i instantly got hooked on episode 3 and i’ve been tuning in every week since episode 7 from then on. I love everything about this drama from the storyline, family, friendships, romance, music, comedy, angst, acting, etc. It’s everything i look for in a kdrama. ‘90s youth band dramas will always be my comfort. I know people refer to this as a time travel drama but i see it more as a youth drama. Anyways, we have 4 more episodes and i’m wishing for a happy ending because i can’t really predict the ending at all… I just know i’ll go back to this drama a lot and you’ll see my talking about it 3 years from now.Was this review helpful to you?
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MUST WATCH!!
This drama is top 2 in my drama list and oh my gosh this shows the efforts of a man for a woman he love and A REAL SON i guess....... idk lets look at some pointers why is it a must watch kdrama!ACTING: The cast was veryyyyyyyyy goooddddddd every role is given suitable to every actor and they acted it so WELL! The couples, friendship,bond between son and father,efforts for love this drama shows all of this and if you like time travelling drama this is a must watch again we have found first point why is it must for you.
OST: Actually i don't notice OSTs much but it was soo good and fit soo well with the moments between the each other so it was a 9/10 for me.
STORY LINE: The story was a 9/10 for I'll tell you why. First of all it was a time traveling drama and i am watching time travelling for the first time it was confusing in between but then got it after sometimes. I know Yoon chung Ah was not his first love but the troope was veryyyyyy good it was SHE FELL FIRST HE FELL HARDER i love these kinds of troops yeah back to topic Yoon chung Ah was not his first love but his true love and i felt so bad when he acted rude with her in starting but poor boy he didn't know she was deaf but later they shared moments with each other, he learn sign language for her and i was melted at that point like THE EFFORTS!! He also protected her and she got along so well with his family, he ate her food even though it was not good, i have noticed one thing in kdramas that the efforts that is done by a man can also be done by a real man like in real life so why to lower girls standard and that is not that hard to do. The bond between son and father is like 😭🫶🏻 oh my god he did everything for his father that he doesn't go deaf but being deaf was in his destiny like meeting yoon chung ah!❤️ But i cuted 0.5 because second lead's screen was not much like their dating era they didn't show much😭 but still this drama i can't forget in my whole lifeeeee😭❤️🫶🏻
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easy and light watch
It was a bit messy, and there were some big holes and flaws in the storyline. They focused too much on things that didn’t really need that much attention, and because of that, many important parts were left out. There were several things that could’ve been explored in more detail, but they just gave us short glimpses of everything, so it ended up feeling rushed and disorganized. Still, it was fun to watch 🍉Was this review helpful to you?
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how do i do ?
So, you're telling me it's over! You're telling me I'll never rediscover it? Please tell me I'll get over it in a week.This drama is what got me back into it. I was feeling a bit nostalgic, and it drew me in.
It was exactly what I needed to get back into the drama sphere, a cute and colorful interlude in my life.
The slice-of-life plus music group combo is so satisfying, as we saw with Hospital Playlist (let's talk about that drama, it was so, so good!). Honestly, I didn't expect to enjoy it so much, and you end up getting so attached to the characters.
Their little stories of relationship hiiii, oh my god, stop being so damn fucking cute!
I'd rather warn you, you get a little caught up in it too, you feel like you could make music yourself. It's inspiring, this group of friends making music together. Okay, so this is a really sweet series that's so easy to watch and makes even the rainiest days a little brighter. But don't be fooled by appearances; there are times when the rain doesn't just come from the sky.
But that makes the journey into the world of this drama even cooler.
Yes, as you can see, I'll always have this drama in my heart.
So colorful and cute! VIVA LA VIDA!
🎵I got a drama way over town that's good to me oh yeah🎵
now let me cry alone and found a new drama to forget that i'am sad
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This drama felt so real and touched me on a deep level
Twinkling Watermelon – 9.5/10This drama felt so real and touched me on a deep level. It made me reflect on my own childhood, my attachment styles, and the things I never fully healed from.
Twinkling Watermelon didn’t just tell a coming-of-age story—it showed what a truly healthy, loving family should look like. It reminded me that parents are just kids who grew up with their own struggles too.
The characters were written with so much heart and care. Watching them grow, heal, and love properly felt like a lesson I didn’t know I needed. Beautiful, emotional, and full of life.
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Love the storyline. Seems typical taken to the past to change their life for the better but still showing that there are still things that cannot be changed and we have to accept it. Typical one of the leads with trauma that needs dealing with.
But overall fun banters and some life lessons can be found.
Acting wise;
I love everyone’s acting, very convincing but I found the Male Lead’s character insufferable. Really really hate his character always interfering and being unreasonable even when he meant well to bring his parents together. Just thought it was a bit much.
Was expecting more screen time between his parents and their romance.
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First of all: imitating Silvestri's music for Back to the Future wasn't essential. That little arpeggio annoyed me.That said, it takes its time at the beginning, a little too much. Probably to show that the time travel thing isn't that central. But neither is the music, since everyone plays superbly without making the slightest effort. It's borderline genetic...
However, I demand a moratorium on characters travelling into the past who are surprised that people don't know their future and get lost in pointless misunderstandings. People have been sentenced to death for less.
Another thing: the fact that one man's affection for another is ridiculed for being gay, I think that's pretty lame and spoils the relationship between the two characters. (a son and his young father, no less).
"When life gives you lemons, make lemonade"
Personally, I'd rather wonder why I'm stuck in a remake of It's a Wonderful Life. In short, the cast is excellent but the story doesn't move forward enough for me to be carried away with it and that disappoints me, unfortunately.
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I cried tears in the end because it broke me and built me up at the same time!
I wasn’t really getting the hype during the first episode. Sure it was fun and moving but I wasn’t obsessed with it. Then came the time travelling back to the past and even that wasn’t so fun seeing Ie chan going after se gyeong etc but damn shortly after it started growing on me so muc i became totally invested in the characters! When Ie cha lost his hearing after all I legit cried tears and I never cry easily ! I wish he didn’t have to lose his hearing but that’s part of his story and I’m okay with that. This drama is perfection and I totally understand now why it’s so highly rated! 100/10 starts for such a beautifully moving experience!Was this review helpful to you?
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un answer question
a lot of unanswer questions1. his father in 1995 just only hurts his ear ,but he still can talk but why? for 28 years he never talk?
2. what happen with yoon chung ah before ha eungyeol back to 1995? how she becoming so poor?
3. what happen with choi se gyeong birth secret? her mom death and her adoption
4. why choi se gyeong nice with yoon chun ah?
5. chung ah mother?
6. it really doesn't make sense, oh eun ya goal is to find her mother's first love, then make them together? But her mother has gone to the US, even if she is close to her mother's first love it won't change anything, because they are different people. so this is a useless effort
7. so choi se kyung first love is oh?
8. about oh eunya suicide friend?
9 and in the last how eun ya know that who the la vida music man is? mr jonathan young face in magazine still same with 1995
10.didnt know what happen with yoon chung ah and ha yi chan before ha eungyeol back to 1995
11. didnt know what happen with choi se gyeong and oh eun ya after they back to 2023
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